1. Technical Field
The present invention relates in general to an electronic consumer preference manager and, in particular, to a method, system, and program for electronically managing consumer preferences for a user. Still more particularly, the present invention relates to a method, system and program for utilizing a single portable data processing system to manage transmission of consumer preferences for a user to multiple diverse retailer systems.
2. Description of the Related Art
As the tide is turning towards a paperless world, computers are becoming more prevalent in order to replace many functions previously performed utilizing paper. In particular, computing devices, such as personal digital assistants, laptop computers and cellular/digital telephones are becoming more commonplace as a personal, portable computer system. Such devices are typically designed to provide reliable and efficient transmittal and storage of data. For example, many digital telephones not only include capabilities to transmit and receive voice data, but to transmit and receive electronic data such as stock quotes, current weather and news. A small display device is typically provided to display the electronic data.
In the consumer world, web sites accessible via a personal computer are allowing services provided to consumers to become more customized. For example, a travel-related web site may provide for a user to enter travel preferences such that when fares that meet the travel preferences are available, the user is notified by electronic mail. In another example, a user may customize an opening web page, such as at yahoo.com, to include preferred types of news, stocks and weather when the user accesses the web page. However, while these web sites provide for user-customization, the user must typically re-enter preferences and personal information at each web site. For example, a user who registers at amazon.com must re-enter preferences and personal information to register at jcrew.com.
In addition, web sites which are accessible via a personal computer are providing bot services. A bot (short for robot) or agent is a program that performs a repetitive, time consuming task, such as searching Web sites and newsgroups for information and indexing the Web sites and newsgroup listings in a databases or an automatic record-keeping system. For example, a user may utilize a Web site offering a shop bot to search the web for the lowest price for a particular music compact disc (CD). The bot would return a listing of web sites selling the particular CD and the price offered by each site. A user is relieved of the task of going to each web site, searching for the CD and recording the price of the CD at that site. However, while bots provide for gathering consumer provider information in a time-efficient manner, typically bots do not provide for the web retailers to respond with additional specialized products and services according to customer preferences. In addition, in the example of the CD, if a user selects to purchase the CD from a particular site provided by the bot, the user must still enter preferences and personal information to register at the site to make the purchase.
Global positioning systems (GPS) add to the applications of personal, portable computer systems. In the consumer world, as personal computer systems include GPS and communication mediums to connect to a network, personal computer systems may receive regionalized advertising and sale updates. For example, a shopper's eye system, incorporating a personal digital assistant (PDA) equipped with a GPS and wireless Internet Protocol (IP), enables a two-way channel with a central control center through which retailers can present customized offers to nearby shoppers based on their particular interests. In particular, the location of a user, shopping goals, preferences and related history may be detected by a central control center for a mall the user has entered. This information is routed to stores in the mall and as the stores receive this information, they may create a customized offer of bundled goods and services. In addition, manufacturers of competing goods are notified and may respond with incentives to add to the offer. The offer is transmitted from the central control center to the user's PDA.
However, the shopper's eye system only provides for a user to receive electronic information at their PDA within a controlled network environment, such as a mall. In addition, the shopper's eye system does not provide for a user to selectively broadcast their preferences to particular stores within a mall or any other shopping environment. In addition, the shopper's eye system does not provide for adjusting both offers transmitted to a user's PDA and the service received by the user upon entering a store. Moreover, the shopper's eye system does not including filtering data at the PDA, such as the shopping preferences for the user, according to the retailer, in order to limit the type of data provided to a particular store or stores. Furthermore, the shopper's eye system does not provide for filtering offers received at the user's PDA to only certain types of offers and to protect against retailer spamming. In addition, the shopper's eye system does not provide for changing electronic advertising at the store or at an output interface accessible to the user according to the user's shopping preferences and location. Moreover, the shopper's eye system does not provide for linking a user's registration at a web site provided by the retailer with the store location provided by the same retailer.
In view of the foregoing, it would be preferable to provide a portable computer system as a personal preference manager that includes multiple types of preferences for a user that are filterable and exportable to multiple diverse retailers such that the retailers can personalize services and products provided to that user. It would be preferable for the retailer to personalize services provided both electronically and via employees to improve customer service. In addition, it would be preferable for a user to designate security criteria for the multiple types of preferences such that differing levels of preferences are transmitted to retailers according to criteria such as the type of retailer, reputation of a retailer, location of a retailer, etc. Moreover, it would be preferable to adjust advertising provided by retailers at display devices accessible to the user according to user preferences. In addition, it would be preferable to link Internet shopping and location shopping such that a user can automatically register at a web site via a bot or via visiting the physical store location.